81-1120.27. Telecommunications system; uses; member of Legislature; long-distance calls; how made.

(1) The facilities of the state's telecommunications systems are provided for the conduct of state business. In addition, the state's telecommunications systems, cellular telephones, electronic handheld devices, or computers may be used by state employees and officials for emails, text messaging, local calls, and long-distance calls to children at home, teachers, doctors, day care centers, baby-sitters, family members, or others to inform them of unexpected schedule changes, and for other essential personal business. Any such use for essential personal business shall be kept to a minimum and shall not interfere with the conduct of state business. A state employee or official shall be responsible for payment or reimbursement of charges, if any, that directly result from any such communication. The Department of Administrative Services may establish procedures for reimbursement of charges pursuant to this section.

(2) A member of the Legislature, while engaged in legislative business, may make personal long-distance calls on the state telecommunications system or by using his or her state credit card. At the end of every month upon the member's receipt of his or her long-distance call record, the personal long-distance calls shall be designated by the member and the member billed for such calls. Reimbursement to the state for such personal long-distance calls by the member shall be made within thirty days from the date of designation.

(3) A member of the Legislature, at his or her own sole discretion, may designate any long-distance call as sensitive or confidential in nature. If a long-distance call is designated as sensitive or confidential in nature, any long-distance call record used in an audit shall contain only the date the long-distance call was made and the cost of the call. In no case shall the person conducting the audit have access to a long-distance call number designated as sensitive or confidential in nature by the member without the written consent of the member. No calls made to or by a member of the Legislature which are sensitive or confidential in nature shall be required to be disclosed except that such calls shall be so designated by the member, and only the amount of the call and such designation shall be made available to a person conducting an audit.

For purposes of this subsection, sensitive or confidential in nature shall mean that either the member of the Legislature or the caller would reasonably expect that the nature or the content of the call would not be disclosed to another person without the consent of the member and the caller.

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